SHU chooses cheaper laptop option

Seton Hall faculty and students were issued 2017 Lenovo ThinkPad and Yoga laptops this semester.

Opinions of the laptops’ performance vary, as some people find them to be more efficient than others.

Student Government Association (SGA) Senator Marlene Da Cruz, a sophomore political science major, attended an SGA meeting on Oct. 23 where she addressed student concerns about why the University chose Lenovo laptops as opposed to Apple laptops.

Da Cruz mentioned that the University took into account what the students would have to pay for the laptops.

Da Cruz wrote in an email, “I would like to clarify that students wanted to know why SHU chose Lenovo instead of Macs per se. This is because the University tries to give the best technology at the lowest possible cost.”

She also said that SHU strives to find options that are suitable for both students’ budgets and academics.

“The University does look at other vendors but believes that Lenovo offers the best quality and support for a reasonable cost,” Da Cruz mentioned.

Students on campus had their share of input about the quality of the Lenovo laptops that they received.

Adrianna Masotti, a junior secondary and special education and english major, explained that she likes particular features of her Lenovo Yoga laptop.

“I like the laptops this year. I’m able to use the stylus to take notes, which I’ve found to be really helpful,” she said.
However, Masotti is not a fan of the declining battery life.

“The battery dies pretty easily, which can be annoying,” she reflected.

Maria Henao, a sophomore marketing major, and Sergio Ferrera, a sophomore finance major, also shared their feelings about the laptops.
“The battery life doesn’t last long at all. The computer also freezes when I’m typing something important. My typing gets interrupted when I’m doing something important and it gets frustrating,” Henao said.

Ferrera also finds the laptop to be unreliable when it comes to typing messages.

“Yeah, I’m on the eBoard of a few different clubs and there have been times when I’m in the middle of sending emails to people and the computer will just crash. The sound is also awful,” he explained.

Additionally, Henao admitted that there are also features about the laptop that she finds to be beneficial.

“I like that it’s a touch screen, that’s helpful. I also like the Windows Notes feature of the Yoga where I can draw out my notes with a stylus. I can take notes more easily with the Yoga,” she expressed.

Stephen Landry, chief information officer (CIO) for Seton Hall’s IT services, said that the reason the school chose Lenovo laptops is because of their reliability.

“The Lenovo reliability is head-and-shoulders above other vendors,” he said.